Chapter 171

Wang Yaozhuo, a palace maid who had moved into the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, smelled something unusual the very first moment the fire broke out. Having just moved into the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, Wang Yaozhuo was still a bit restless; destined to serve the Emperor in his bedchamber, she was somewhat excited. She had always been a light sleeper, and upon smelling the scent, she opened her eyes. She was slightly dazed for a moment, but then her expression changed drastically. Like a startled rabbit, she put on her undergarments and prepared to rush into the Emperor's bedchamber.

The Palace of Earthly Tranquility had a total of nine rooms, all of which could be inhabited. The eastern and western end rooms were warm chambers, and the floors of these warm chambers were equipped with heated brick beds (kang). The eastern and western sides were connected by corridors, through-halls, and left and right wing rooms. The entire Great Ming Imperial Palace was composed of such wooden structures, halls, and pavilions, making it extremely easy to catch fire.

Wang Yaozhuo was making a huge scene in front of the door. Zhu Yijun walked out from inside, already dressed. Seeing Wang Yaozhuo barefoot, wearing only her undergarments, and with a face full of panic, he ordered someone to bring a crane-patterned cloak to drape over her, and said with a smile, "What are you panicking about?"

Wang Yaozhuo looked at the Emperor, feeling somewhat incredulous. The person before her seemed to have anticipated this long ago. A massive fire had broken out in the palace, yet the Emperor had actually finished dressing before walking out of his bedchamber.

"Let's go." Zhu Yijun ruffled Wang Yaozhuo's hair and walked in front. Including Wang Yaozhuo, there were eight attendants in the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, and they walked out of the palace together.

The flames soared into the sky.

On the fourteenth day of the fourth month of the fourth year of Wanli, Zhu Yijun, who had just successfully conducted a lightning-attraction experiment, had finally offended the Heavens, inviting the descent of heavenly fire. The fire, of unknown origin, suddenly erupted from the Gate of Returning to the Ultimate on the west side of the Golden Water Bridge, spreading to the three great halls of the Imperial City: the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of Central Harmony, and the Hall of Preserving Harmony.

The gale-force winds carried the raging flames, curling them into tongues of fire several zhang high. Whenever they licked the wooden structures of the halls and pavilions, a sea of fire would ignite instantly. Roof tiles exploded with a crackling sound in the fire, flying everywhere in the sky.

The heat of the flames illuminated one terrified face after another.

Just as Zhu Yijun walked out of the gate of the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, he saw Feng Bao and the others waiting outside the palace gate. Ever since Feng Bao had been stripped of his duties at the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, he was not allowed to enter the palace gates at will; if there was any matter, he would send a note from outside. The "Old Ancestor" (the Empress Dowager) had no dissatisfaction with this, as the struggle between Zhang Hong and Feng Bao was maintained in a state of "fighting without breaking." Zhang Hong had specifically arranged for a maid to pass messages back and forth with Xu Jue.

At this moment, Feng Bao could no longer care about palace prohibitions or anything else. He rushed hurriedly to the Emperor's side, knelt on the ground, and said tremblingly, "Your servant is late in coming to save the Emperor. I beg Your Majesty to forgive my sin."

Feng Bao was holding the palace's suggestion box. At the second quarter of the You hour (5:30 PM), when Feng Bao was checking the reports, he saw a note that read: "There may be a great fire in the palace."

Feng Bao immediately realized something was wrong. Intelligence is like this: the simpler it is, the more authentic it is; the more complex and detailed it is, the less credible it is. If it has times, locations, people, events, and even various detailed dialogues, such intelligence is not worth reading. But the fewer the words, the bigger the matter. Feng Bao did not dare to have any slackness and prepared for the worst.

At that time, Feng Bao had already arranged for people to handle it and prepared an emergency plan. When he heard that a fire had broken out, he immediately reported it to the Emperor, saying the fire had already started and requesting the Emperor to take refuge.

That was why Feng Bao had rushed over in such a hurry. The assassination attempt on the Emperor on the twenty-ninth day of the first month of the first year of Wanli also began with arson, followed by an assassination.

What Feng Bao worried about most was the Emperor, but the Emperor appeared before him safe and sound, which made Feng Bao let out a long sigh of relief. Feng Bao had almost been scared to death. This time, it was fortunate that he had saved the Emperor effectively; otherwise, his head would not have been secure.

If the palace changed masters, Feng Bao, this servant, would undoubtedly die. Which Emperor wouldn't replace the staff with his own people?

The place for refuge was the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility. The design of the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility had no through-halls or corridors connected to it, so the young Emperor could go there to take refuge, and the fire in the palace would not spread there.

"Feng Banban was able to warn me in advance and rushed over to save me as soon as the fire started. The fire is still several zhang away from the Palace of Earthly Tranquility. Feng Banban, no need for formalities, no need for formalities." Zhu Yijun's mood was not too bad, and he even called Feng Bao "Feng Banban," which proved he was in a good mood.

The number of times the Great Ming Imperial Palace had caught fire was simply too many. This center of power was the place where contradictions were most intense. Zhang Juzheng and the Emperor, master and disciple, had caused such public resentment that they even planned to attack the theory of "Heaven-Man Resonance." How could that be allowed?

Compared to the last time when Feng Bao arrived late, this time Feng Bao had warned him before the fire spread to the Palace of Earthly Tranquility. This "Old Ancestor" was already very qualified.

"Have people move all the valuable things in the palace out and send them to the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility. I will stay in the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility for a few days first." Zhu Yijun gave orders in an orderly and rather calm manner, saying, "Bring a pair of shoes for Princess Wang."

"Your servant obeys the decree." Feng Bao bowed his head again and led the eunuchs into the palace to start the rescue, moving all the valuable things in the palace out, intending to move them to the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility. After Feng Bao led people into the palace, Zhao Mengyou led a large team of dozens of Embroidered Uniform Guards and rushed to the front of the Palace of Earthly Tranquility. If the fire burned the palace, it could be rebuilt; if the fire burned the Emperor, then everything would be over.

The Emperor's sparring partners also arrived immediately. These ten sparring partners were now also starting their internships, wearing red helmets and responsible for guarding the palace. As soon as the fire broke out, the five sparring partners on duty, including Luo Sigong and others, rushed to the front of the Palace of Earthly Tranquility without stopping. Luo Sigong had taken off his armor along the way because he ran fast, which would also be convenient when entering the fire to save people.

But when they arrived at the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, they saw the young Emperor standing on the square, looking at the direction where the fire was soaring into the sky with his hands behind his back.

"Your servant is late in coming to save the Emperor." Zhao Mengyou also had no armor on his body; he didn't know where he had lost it. Seeing that the Emperor was fine, the heart that had been in his throat fell back into his stomach. With the current tax-collecting ability of the Great Ming court, even if the entire imperial palace were burned down, it could be rebuilt, but if His Majesty were gone, then he would really be gone.

Zhang Juzheng would have to die, Feng Bao would have to die, and most of the court officials would have to be replaced. A new Emperor brings new courtiers. The Great Ming, which had just shown signs of vigor, would fall into the quagmire again.

"Not late, not late. Commandant, no need for formalities. Everyone, no need for formalities. Go in and help, rescue the valuable things. Those are all money! If they are gone, we will have to spend money to build them!" Zhu Yijun waved his hand, signaling the Embroidered Uniform Guards to enter the palace to help.

The young Emperor, who advocated frugality, was indeed very frugal!

The next to arrive were Empress Dowager Li and Empress Dowager Chen. The two Empress Dowagers arrived almost one after the other. Seeing Zhu Yijun standing on the open ground in front of the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, they both breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.

"My son, are you hurt?" Empress Dowager Li carefully examined the young Emperor. Compared to the last assassination attempt where he had even bumped his head, this time he was completely unharmed.

Zhu Yijun said with a smile, "No. The ministers nowadays are becoming more and more incompetent. Last time they committed arson and even sent people to the Palace of Earthly Tranquility to assassinate me. Now they can't even send a single person to stand before me."

"Man-made?" Empress Dowager Chen's expression changed drastically. She had always believed that the young Emperor was the True Dragon, and as long as the True Dragon was in the court, there was nothing the Great Ming had to fear. But this True Dragon was a living person; as long as this person was killed, the vitality that the Great Ming had just recovered would all dissipate.

"As long as it is a person, they will die if killed."

Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "Someone reported that there might be a great fire. Since it is as reported, it is naturally man-made."

"Damn it, damn it!" Empress Dowager Chen was directly angry. She couldn't quite understand: didn't the court officials clamor every day about wanting a wise monarch? The wise monarch was right before their eyes; if he were harmed, how slim would the chances be for another wise monarch to appear in the world?

It really is too damn it!

The valuable items from the Palace of Earthly Tranquility were sent to the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility. Zhu Yijun looked at the fire, his eyes dark and unclear. He was thinking about many, many things and was not very angry. These were all "traditional skills," and Zhu Yijun had precautions. The fire was getting bigger and bigger, and Zhu Yijun did not let the palace maids continue to fight the fire. It would be fine if it just burned clean like this.

The loss was enormous. Starting from the Right Gate of Obedience, the fire burned to the Hall of Martial Achievement, the Gate of Supreme Harmony, the Left Gate of Obedience, the Hall of Literary Brilliance, the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of Central Harmony, the Hall of Preserving Harmony, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, and the Palace of Earthly Honor. It was equivalent to saying that the buildings on the central axis of the Great Ming Imperial Palace had all been burned down in one fire.

Under the sweep of the fire, everything that could be burned was burned, and then the fire slowly subsided. The Commandant had already locked the palace gates, and no one was allowed to enter or leave the palace. They prepared to conduct a massive cleanup of the palace. All the palace maids in the palace had to be screened; they were determined to find this villain and give His Majesty an explanation.

Zhu Yijun wrote a note in the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility, the content of which was: "Court meeting as usual tomorrow."

Fire is fire, work is work. The court meeting still had to be held. If the Hall of Literary Brilliance stopped for a day, the court affairs could not circulate normally, the Great Ming's affairs would be delayed for a day, the new policies would be delayed for a day, and the Great Ming's vigor would be delayed for a day.

As soon as the fire started, Zhang Juzheng rushed to the outside of the Meridian Gate, demanding to open the palace gate to enter and have an audience with the Emperor. This was a very prohibited thing, but Zhang Juzheng could not care about it anymore. He just wanted to knock on the palace gate at night to see the Emperor, at least to confirm that the Emperor was fine.

Afterwards, the Great Ming's court officials and all the officials gathered outside the Meridian Gate, waiting for the Emperor's decree.

Xu Jue was lowered down from a basket. The palace gate absolutely could not be opened. Xu Jue only gave the note written by His Majesty's own hand to Zhang Juzheng, and then sat in the basket and returned to the palace.

Xu Jue did not say a word. In Xu Jue's view, before the matter was investigated clearly, even Zhang Juzheng was a suspect.

You must know that Zhang Juzheng was the leader of the civil officials. In the eyes of the eunuchs, these civil officials all deserved to die.

Zhang Juzheng saw the Emperor's handwritten letter, and only then did he recover his senses. His Majesty was fine; this was the greatest luck.

But the Emperor's imperial decree made Zhang Juzheng somewhat sluggish again. Such a huge thing had happened, yet the Emperor's first reaction was to request the court meeting to be held as usual! His Majesty's diligence in government should have been a happy event; this was considering it from the public perspective. But from the private perspective, the Emperor was the most outstanding disciple of his, the Grand Secretary!

Moving earth on the head of the Grand Duke! Don't you know what kind of ruthless person Zhang Juzheng is! Zhang Juzheng and "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trust" simply don't match.

This was destined to be a sleepless night, but Zhu Yijun slept very soundly. After the fire subsided, he yawned and went straight to sleep, while Empress Dowager Li and Empress Dowager Chen were so anxious that they didn't sleep all night, ordering Feng Bao to catch this thief, and to find the real mastermind behind the scenes.

Wang Yaozhuo served near the Emperor. She looked at the young Emperor's face, somewhat infatuated. She couldn't understand: such a big thing had happened, yet this young Emperor could be so calm and could sleep so soundly.

This was a man-made disaster. Facing such a sudden change, he didn't change his expression, and he even dressed extremely neatly.

Man-made disaster; the appearance of the note was the greatest evidence. This matter must be man-made, not a natural disaster. Now the Great Ming Imperial Palace was equipped with lightning rods, so where would the wrath of Heaven come from!

Once the palace gate was locked and isolated from the world, the interior of the Great Ming Imperial Palace was a typical zero-sum game. In a zero-sum game, it was as easy as turning over one's hand to find someone. Soon, Feng Bao found the little eunuch who had reported it. This little eunuch said that he had also heard it occasionally. Following the vine to find the melon, they found the person who set the fire, but when they found him, this person had already hanged himself.

Feng Bao was not late; the body was already cold. After this person set the fire, he committed suicide out of fear of crime. The clue seemed to be broken here.

It seemed so, but in fact, the clue was not interrupted at all. Although this internal ghost who set the fire was physically dead, his life had already been profiled by the Eastern Depot agents. A person who lived on paper appeared.

The trajectory of the internal ghost's life became exceptionally clear. Afterwards, they started to investigate from all aspects. What was exceptionally surprising was that all the clues pointed to one person again: Gao Gong, who was in Xinzheng.

Feng Bao was stunned. He had a grudge against Gao Gong, and their relationship was one where they wished the other would die the next day. It made it look like he, Feng Bao, was deliberately creating a miscarriage of justice!

But all the clues pointed to the same target. Feng Bao knew something was wrong, and Zhao Mengyou also knew something was wrong. The most important thing was that Gao Gong didn't have that ability. Once a person loses power, even ghosts won't come to the door. Gao Gong was just a gentry with some ability, but he couldn't make any waves in the capital.

Last time Gao Gong returned to the capital, except for Ge Shouli and Zhang Juzheng, there wasn't even anyone to see him off. This was the result of losing power.

Everything was wrong. This was because the direction of the investigation was wrong. And this time, Zhao Mengyou started a further investigation. Gao Gong couldn't do it, so it meant someone was doing things under Gao Gong's name.

Conspiracy is something that, if you want to succeed, involves more people. As long as you want to investigate, you can always figure out the truth.

The next morning, Zhu Yijun's spirit was quite good. The ministers came to the front of the Hall of Literary Brilliance again and saw a fire scene full of ashes. According to the disposal method of the three great halls catching fire during the Jiajing period, the Beijing army began to enter the palace to dispose of the fire scene.

In the thirty-sixth year of Jiajing, the Jiajing Emperor, who was the "Great True Man of the Five Thunders," had a thunderstorm, and the fire suddenly started. Three halls, two towers, and fifteen gates were all burned down. The next day, 30,000 military workers entered, and 5,000 vehicles began to enter. Every day at the Yin hour (3:00 AM), they began to enter the palace, and it lasted until the You hour (7:00 PM). They worked for a full ten days before cleaning up the fire scene.

On the fourteenth day of the fourth month of the fourth year of Wanli, all the buildings on the central axis of the Great Ming Imperial Palace were burned down.

Zhang Juzheng looked at the fire scene, stunned. It was too terrible. The scene before him was as terrible as his mood. He had only knocked on the palace gate at night last night, and today he had directly done something even more presumptuous: blocking the court officials from entering the hall and having a separate audience.

"Your servant pays respects to Your Majesty. Your servant has failed the trust of the late Emperor and the reliance of Your Majesty, causing Your Majesty to be trapped in a predicament with no way to act. Your servant is guilty." Zhang Juzheng knelt on the ground, and as soon as he finished speaking, he was already in tears.

"Oh, Grand Secretary, please rise quickly. What sin is there?" Zhu Yijun still said with a smile, "As long as you didn't kill me, Grand Secretary, you are innocent. No need for formalities, no need for formalities."

"Grand Secretary, since the relocation of the capital in the nineteenth year of Yongle, the Great Ming's Northern Capital Imperial Palace has caught fire forty-two times, averaging once every five years. The largest fire was the relocation of the capital to the Northern Capital in the nineteenth year of Yongle. The Chengzu Wen Emperor had just moved the capital to the Northern Capital, and the imperial palace was set on fire in the fourth month. This fire lasted until the sixth year of Zhengtong before the three great halls began to be rebuilt."

"In the twentieth year of Yongle, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility caught fire again, and the Chengzu Wen Emperor's bedchamber was set on fire again."

"In the first month of the ninth year of Zhengde, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility caught fire again. The fire burned for a full three hours, and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility and the Palace of Earthly Honor were burned clean."

"In the first year of Jiajing, the Shizong Emperor had just arrived in the capital for less than a year when the three palaces, including the Palace of Clear Tranquility, caught fire. In the third month of the fourth year, the Palace of Benevolence and Longevity caught fire; in the tenth month of the eighth year, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility had a great fire; in the first month of the tenth year, the palace caught fire again."

"In the fire in the fourth month of the thirty-sixth year of Jiajing, the three great halls, the two towers of civil and military, the Left Gate of Obedience, the Right Gate of Obedience, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, the Palace of Earthly Honor, and the Meridian Gate were all burned clean. What could Grandfather do? He couldn't do anything either, he could only issue a decree to rebuild."

It wasn't that Zhu Yijun didn't read the national history. He clearly knew that the imperial palace, which was at the center of the power struggle, was the most dangerous place in the world, and the fire could take his life as an Emperor at any time.

Zhang Juzheng was silent for a long time and said, "Your servant implores a thorough investigation of the culprit!"

"Grand Secretary, are you sure it was man-made?" Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Juzheng and asked calmly.

"It absolutely cannot be a natural disaster. There was a rainstorm at noon, and Your Majesty's lightning-attraction tower was successful. Although I don't understand it, I also built a lightning-attraction tower in my own home, which can indeed... shield the secrets of Heaven and avoid lightning strikes. Although I don't understand it, this lightning-attraction tower avoids lightning, so it absolutely cannot be a natural disaster!" Zhang Juzheng immediately replied, "It was someone who deliberately set the fire!"

Zhang Juzheng didn't trust anyone. The Emperor grew crops in the palace, and he grew sweet potatoes under the hackberry tree. The palace conducted dispersion experiments, and he insisted on checking them himself. The palace used telescopes to observe the stars, and Zhang Juzheng also had two. He didn't trust the eunuchs around the Emperor, just as Xu Jue suspected even Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng was afraid that the young Emperor would be deceived, while the eunuchs felt that Zhang Juzheng was also one of the suspects.

This lightning-avoidance technique was too much like those spells. Zhang Juzheng was also afraid that the young Emperor would go astray and be addicted to Daoist magic and the like, so he also built a lightning-attraction tower, which was the same as the one in the palace, and he also installed quite a few lightning rods, just to do comparative experiments.

The result was that it could indeed avoid lightning. Therefore, this lightning strike was absolutely not a warning from Heaven, but just a principle of the infinite nature of all things that had not yet been understood.

Then this fire was not a natural disaster caused by lightning, but deliberate arson.

"I thought Grand Secretary would say 'let the matter rest' again." Zhu Yijun was somewhat surprised. He thought Zhang Juzheng would use this fire case as a political bargaining chip to exchange, just like last time. Even if it were really exchanged, Zhu Yijun wouldn't blame Zhang Juzheng's choice.

In the first month of the first year of Wanli, when repairing the mausoleum for the late Emperor, there was only less than 400,000 taels, and the Great Ming was almost falling apart, so they could only exchange it like this.

Now the Great Ming's new policies were being implemented. Zhu Yijun also approved of using the fire in the palace as a bargaining chip to exchange. Who wouldn't suffer a little grievance? Eight or nine out of ten things in life are unsatisfactory.

Those who discuss government decrees away from any historical background are all "base Confucianists" who don't understand the trends of the times and violate the laws of natural development.

"Your servant is guilty of death!" Zhang Juzheng himself was very vengeful, and of course, he knew his disciple was also vengeful. That was why he brought Gao Gong to the capital last winter to restart the assassination case, even if it involved many people, he couldn't let His Majesty suffer this grievance.

But the Emperor's choice was not to restart the old case or settle old scores, but to choose to endure this grievance for the sake of the stability of the country and the new policies.

There were plenty of grievances. Zhu Di moved the capital from the Southern Capital to the Northern Capital in high spirits, and the new house he had lived in for only three months was set on fire by someone, and he couldn't even vent his anger. A year later, the bedchamber he lived in was set on fire again. What could the Wen Emperor, who had campaigned five times to the north and traveled six times to the west (the seventh time was during the Xuande period), do?

He could only reflect on himself, saying that he had invited the wrath of Heaven, and so on.

"Grand Secretary, don't keep saying 'guilty of death, guilty of death,' making it like the remonstrating officials." Zhu Yijun corrected Zhang Juzheng again. The Great Ming's new policies were unfolding vigorously. Zhu Yijun and Zhang Juzheng were "one glory, one glory; one loss, one loss." If Zhu Yijun died, Zhang Juzheng would inevitably step down, or even die in an unclear way.

Although Zhu Yijun didn't have a son, he had a younger brother. He could just lift Zhu Yiliu up to be the Emperor, but Zhang Juzheng, the Grand Secretary, and Feng Bao, the "Old Ancestor," would undoubtedly die.

The Emperor didn't doubt Zhang Juzheng at all. Even if it were finally found out that it was really Zhang Juzheng who did it, Zhu Yijun would of course kill Zhang Juzheng, but he would only blame himself for not knowing people well and trusting others lightly. He would absolutely not cancel Zhang Juzheng's government decrees.

Zhu Yijun hoped for the Great Ming's resurgence even more than Zhang Juzheng. Making the Great Ming great again was a mission higher than his own life and honor.

Zhang Juzheng was like this, and Zhu Yijun was even more so.

"A thorough investigation must be done. Grand Secretary, let me tell you a joke. This time it's Gao Gong again, hahaha!" After Zhu Yijun finished speaking, he laughed himself. Feng Bao and Zhao Mengyou didn't believe it. That stubborn old man Gao Gong had great courage and ruthless methods, but he didn't have that ability now.

Zhang Juzheng heard that the culprit had been found and immediately said in a vibrating voice, "Your Majesty, your servant requests the Embroidered Uniform Guards to immediately go to arrest the main culprit and bring him back to the capital for questioning."

"Gao Gong, I have already seen him. I don't think it's him." Zhu Yijun shook his head and said.

"Since the culprit wants to pursue Gao Gong, then pursue him. He will naturally reveal his flaws." Zhang Juzheng bowed his head again and said.

Zhu Yijun understood. This was a common political struggle method. The enemy used a conspiracy, and he would push the boat with the current. The Emperor seemed to have been fooled, but in fact, it was to make the enemy relax their vigilance, and then launch an ambush, just like the one General Qi played at Green Dragon Fort, luring the enemy deep.

"Hmm, Feng Banban, Commandant, send troops to Xinzheng and bring Gao Gong back... to be questioned. It's an invitation, not an arrest. Gao Gong has old illnesses, so don't tie him to the horse's back. That must not be done. Although I don't like Gao Gong and don't agree with Gao Gong's new policies, he still has merits to the country. Just bring him to the capital slowly." Zhu Yijun was not being sarcastic. He didn't agree with Gao Gong's approach and didn't like Gao Gong, but Gao Gong had merits to the country after all.

Here with Zhu Yijun, as long as one acts like a person, the Emperor will treat the other party as a person.

"Your servant obeys the decree." Zhao Mengyou directly ordered the Embroidered Uniform Guards to send troops to Xinzheng, which was Gao Gong's hometown.

"Your Majesty, your servant requests General Qi to return to the capital." Zhang Juzheng bowed his head again to request the order. The meaning of asking Qi Jiguang to return was very clear: Zhang Juzheng intended to start a massacre! Since they were going to flip the table, Zhang Juzheng and the young Emperor's disposal plan were exactly the same: super-doubled!

Directly order troops to surround and kill, physically eliminating the opponents cleanly, and the problem would be completely solved.

Zhang Juzheng discovered that Tan Lun's radicalism was very reasonable. Understand Tan Lun, approve of Tan Lun, become Tan Lun. Zhang Juzheng intended to flip the table, kill until the blood flowed like a river, kill until the sky was clear and bright. Daring to take action against the Emperor, then they had to bear the Emperor's wrath.

Zhu Yijun shook his head and said, "Then what about Daning Guard? Don't want it anymore?"

Zhang Juzheng bowed his head and said, "We can make concessions to Tuman Khan, not confer a title, but open a market, and move the main army back to the capital."

"I will not make concessions to Tuman Khan. The military deployment of Daning Guard will still follow the old order. Daning Guard cannot be lost." Zhu Yijun said with great disapproval. Compared to Daning Guard, the liquidation matter could be postponed.

"Your Majesty!" Zhang Juzheng held his hands, and this time he was very stubborn.

"Grand Secretary, the national affairs are dangerous!" Zhu Yijun still disapproved.

Zhang Juzheng shook his head again and said, "A King has no selfishness!"

"National affairs have priorities, and contradictions have primary and secondary aspects. This is the principle you taught me, Grand Secretary. 'The people are the most important, the country is next, and the ruler is the least.' This is the method from Mencius: 'Exhausting the Mind, Part II.' How can you not distinguish between priorities and primary and secondary aspects, Grand Secretary? Occupying Daning Guard is a long-term strategy for the country and must not be lost." Zhu Yijun was very persistent, and he was also very stubborn.

"Your servant has never taught this sentence. During the Hongwu period, this sentence was deleted." Zhang Juzheng immediately retorted.

Zhu Yijun sat upright and said, "Generally speaking, there are three things that a country relies on to stand: the people, the country, and the ruler. Everyone knows that the ruler is respected and the country is important, but they don't know that the people's connection is even more urgent."

"In my opinion, although the people are very small, they are the foundation of the country. If the foundation is solid, the country is peaceful. Why?"

"Although they have no respected status, they have a formidable form. The people are the most precious. Although the country is the anchor of a country, the people provide the land, and the sacrifices are made for the people's livelihood. The people take food as their heaven, and prayers for grain are made for the people's lives. They cannot be discussed on the same level as the people. That is why the country is next."

"As for the ruler, although he is the common master of gods and men, his ruling over the masses is all due to the love and support of the people; his protection of the territory is all due to the peace of the country. They cannot be discussed on the same level as the two."

"The weight of the ruler, the people, and the country is like this. As a ruler, can one not take the people and the country as important, and be cautious and calculating for their peace every day?"

Zhu Yijun directly recited the whole passage and asked with a smile, "Grand Secretary, you taught this."

Zhang Juzheng was uncertain. This was indeed his annotation, discussing the relationship between the people, the country, and the ruler. But he remembered very clearly that he had never taught this passage in his lectures. According to the "Imperial Ming Ancestral Instructions," this was deleted content, so he naturally wouldn't teach it. He said with great surprise, "This is a casual annotation, not a direct explanation of the Four Books. Your servant has never taught it!"

"Is it what you said, Grand Secretary?" Zhu Yijun said rather calmly.

"When your servant returned to the capital in the thirty-fifth year of Jiajing, I did annotate this passage, but your servant did not submit it to the Emperor." The "Direct Explanation of the Four Books" printed by Zhang Juzheng didn't have this passage.

"I asked the Minister of Rites, Ma Ziqiang, to find it for me." Zhu Yijun said with great certainty, "This is indeed the principle you taught, Grand Secretary."

"My mind is made up. General Qi is still at Daning Guard. It won't be too late to liquidate after he returns." Zhu Yijun used Zhang Juzheng's principles to refute Zhang Juzheng.

Flipping the table naturally meant flipping the table, but it had to wait until the army returned in triumph and the Yongping Guard troops took over the defense of Daning Guard. This was a long-term strategy for the country.

"Proclaim the Minister of Justice to enter the hall." Zhu Yijun asked Zhang Hong to call Wang Chonggu in.

As soon as Wang Chonggu entered the door, he knelt and crawled to the front of the Emperor, knelt on the ground, and said with his head bowed, "Your servant is guilty. Your servant has failed the holy grace of Your Majesty."

"I beg Your Majesty to consider your servant's meager achievements in presiding over the tribute in the northwest, settling the people, resettling 190,000 refugees, reclaiming wasteland, promoting sweet potatoes for the people's livelihood, and supervising the wool official factory, and spare the lives of my family."

Wang Chonggu knew very well who had set the fire in the palace. The scope of people in the court who had the ability, courage, and motive to do this was really very, very small.

This time, there was no Yang Bo to come out to smooth things over. Wang Chonggu didn't intend to smooth things over at all. How could he have the ability to cover the sky for such a huge thing? He only begged that he and his son would not be implicated.

Wang Chonggu only hated himself for releasing the poison snake too late and not poisoning Zhang Siwei directly to death.

The most radical in the court was Tan Lun, followed by Wang Chonggu, then the Emperor, and finally Zhang Juzheng. The most conservative was the Minister of Personnel, Wan Shihe. Begging for monthly tickets, Awoo!!!!!!!!!!!!

(End of chapter)